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The Morrow Secrets has won the ‘Bangzo Young Adult Fantasy Book Award’

115 x 5* & 4* Reviews for The Morrow Secrets trilogy

The Morrow Secrets is the first instalment in a fantasy trilogy, steeped in mystery, magic and the paranormal. The story starts with a family secret that the ever curious Tallitha Mouldson cannot resist unearthing – and so the tale begins. Tallitha and her brother, Tyaas, become ensnared in the intrigue, caught in the sinister web of their eccentric family, the powerful Morrow dynasty and lured into danger and the occult. Set in an alternative world, in an enormous rambling house, with hidden rooms and winding staircases, a vast sprawling edifice called Winderling Spires, the Gothic atmosphere of the old mansion creeps into the characters.

‘The Morrow Secrets’ is an epic tale of witchcraft, ghosts and the paranormal, a dangerous yarn of deception, laced with frightening twists and wicked turns. Tallitha’s world is full of peculiar characters, some eccentric, others forged with wicked intent, seemingly lurking around every corner in the eerie old house … watching Tallitha’s every move and luring her further into the web of mystery and witchcraft It is a tale about good and evil, about Tallitha and Tyaas’s struggle against the dark forces that have shaped their family’s past and now invade their present. Yet Tallitha is undaunted and so begins their breath-taking adventure, exploring the dark world of Winderling Spires, discovering clues to their past that entice them into the hostile lands of Breedoor where a more sinister fate awaits them…

Breathing New Life into Gothic Literature(Magazine Article) It’s testament to the power of Susan McNally’s unique and singular imagination that she has managed to craft such a brilliant book within a genre that is so well-trodden. Her debut novel throws readers into the sublime and suspenseful world of magic and mystery, creatures and castles, somehow managing to never sound stale. The first in a trilogy, The Morrow Secrets adheres to the best of Gothic fiction and adds Susan’s own brand of eccentricity that will delight readers young and old. So, in a genre that can be both scary and seductive, with hauntings, heroes and ghastly ghouls galore, how do we know which conventions are worth sticking with? On the surface, the main protagonist of The Morrow Secrets is Tallitha, a headstrong girl determined to unearth the peculiar secrets of her family’s past. We follow Tallitha on an incredible journey as she fights the forces of evil, and delves deeper into the mystery that is her family’s dark past. The Morrow Secrets contains over 50 delightfully depicted characters in total, but despite this the real stars of the show are the spooky settings. From the rambling old house of Winderling Spires to the sinister and aptly named castle, Hellstone Tors, Susan McNally’s book is filled with a wonderful sense of the macabre. Indeed the castle is an important setting for many Gothic classics. Notable examples include supposed Gothic fiction trailblazer The Castle of Otranto, and the iconic stronghold of Count Dracula high up in the Transylvanian hills, even though a well-worn gothic staple, no convention conjures up creepy quite like the castle. Even Mary Shelley’s famous book Frankenstein has seen the original setting of a university science lab revised to take place in a castle for big screen adaptations. Interestingly, author Dean Koontz has crafted his own series named Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein that directly draws inspiration from Shelley’s work. His books transplant the Gothic horror staple into present day New Orleans, creating a refreshing take on a literary classic. Another important element of any Gothic fiction is the use of fantastical and supernatural characters. The Morrow Secrets is awash with the paranormal, from Tallitha’s growing supernatural powers to the troops of weird servants called shroves. This is something that contemporary writers of the popular True Blood, Twilight and Beautiful Creatures series’ also deal in heavily. Although not gothic fiction as such, these books have crafted a new range of supernatural fiction for teen audiences. They have twisted traditionally ghoulish creatures like vampires, werewolves and witches into something altogether more alluring, and in the process have added a new dynamic to customs that were starting to feel just a tad outdated. However, all these links are fairly straight forward and there are, in fact, novels that you wouldn’t instantly think are gothic works, but are. Stories like Wuthering Heights for example on the surface appear simply as tales of romance, but look a little deeper and all the traditional gothic elements are there; stormy weather, nightmares, dramatic landscapes, excessive cruelty and supernatural goings on.

Yet another common convention of Gothic literature is the way in which it often contains a hero whose true identity is revealed at the end of the novel. This is especially true of this book, as Tallitha spends the novel trying to uncover the eerie secrets of her family, eventually stumbling upon startling revelations. What marks The Morrow Secrets out as head and shoulders above the rest however is the panache with which Susan McNally explores the genre, knowing which well-worn elements to embrace and which ones to discard. However, what’s best is how vividly she brings this fantastical world alive, so perhaps in years to come we’ll be celebrating this as another classic of Gothic fiction!

Extracts from reviews…

5* Thoroughly enjoyable!

…’Drew me in from the beginning. Was unable to put it down! I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen next’…

A sinister fairytale of epic proportions that will ignite the readers’ imagination, taking them on a spellbinding journey of wonder and delight

..Set in a menacing world where old secrets abound, only Tallitha’s determination and her paranormal powers can unearth the sinister truth about the evil history of the Morrow dynasty – and so the story begins in a huge rambling house with twisting passageways, forbidden floors and forgotten wings where darkness prevails, leading Tallitha and Tyaas ever further into the murky realm of witchcraft and the supernatural..

The Morrow Secrets trilogy is written for those who like dark fantasy and love becoming immersed in strange alternative worlds, of supernatural fairy tales, of magic and the macabre, the paranormal and make believe. It is a roller- coaster of suspense with a tinge of horror…

…’Spine-chilling Fantasy Gothic with a supernatural twist’…

21 Five Star* Reviews for The Morrow Secrets Trilogy

….’I loved it!’… ‘

…..’A Wonderful Gothic delight for all readers’ …

….’A Dark Treat’…

…’Book of the Year!’….

Perfect for the YA market

Excerpts from the 5* reviews on Amazon

5.0 out of 5 stars Can’t Wait For The Next Sequel!!!!!!!!!!

‘I could not stop reading it when I started, it should be made into a film, it would be great!’

5* Gothic Fun ‘What a great story! The plot leading you on a dark and dangerous adventure full of intrigue, betrayal and magic’

One Response to “Dark Fantasy Brimming with Magic and the Paranormal”

I am currently doing a rooteratisn project on this entire album!This summer I received my Grandfather’s album of all of Sidney’s O’Flaherty photographs, and I would love to share them with everyone.If someone knows where I can get a hold of Sidney R. Morrow or any vets of this ship, please let me know!